A page from the "Calendars" exhibit...

A month of moons

With this interactive moon phase calendar, you can choose a month and year and see why lunar months aren’t an exact match with calendar months.

August 2020

prev
Choose Month and Year:
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
         
1
Waxing Gibbous Moon
2
Waxing Gibbous Moon
3
Full Moon
4
Full Moon
5
Waning Gibbous Moon
6
Waning Gibbous Moon
7
Waning Gibbous Moon
8
Waning Gibbous Moon
9
Waning Gibbous Moon
10
Waning Gibbous Moon
11
Last Quarter Moon
12
Last Quarter Moon
13
Waning Crescent Moon
14
Waning Crescent Moon
15
Waning Crescent Moon
16
Waning Crescent Moon
17
Waning Crescent Moon
18
Waning Crescent Moon
19
New Moon Crescent Moon
20
Waxing Crescent Moon
21
Waxing Crescent Moon
22
Waxing Crescent Moon
23
Waxing Crescent Moon
24
Waxing Crescent Moon
25
First Quarter Moon
26
First Quarter Moon
27
Waxing Gibbous Moon
28
Waxing Gibbous Moon
29
Waxing Gibbous Moon
30
Waxing Gibbous Moon
31
Waxing Gibbous Moon
      
next
« Earlier Later »

For millennia, calendars were constructed according to the phases of the moon. We can only imagine what ancient astronomers thought as they scanned the night sky and saw the constantly changing appearance of this large celestial body.

Step outside! Keep track of the moon in your night sky, and chart the changes yourself. See our tips on how to chart the moon in the sky and explore the phases of the moon over the course of its 29.53-day cycle. In the process, you’ll discover why lunar months aren’t an exact match with calendar months.

Advertisement